Will a broody hen raise chicks?

[Outrun Acres]

We had a broody hen sitting on fertile eggs only 2 of the 12 eggs hatched. We had some chicks from the feed store in our brooder at the same time. We decided to move Mama Hen and her two chicks into the brooder to see if she would accept the other chicks. She immediately accepted them and started to care for them. Now she has 10 chicks to look after. I think we will move them all out to the coup soon. I am just worried about what the other hens and the roosters will do to the chicks. We haven't gotten that far yet. Our broody hen is a Columbian Wyandotte which I think is known to be a broody breed. So far she has been a great mama. She talks to her chicks constantly and picks up food in her beak and drops it in front of of the them and tells them to eat it. At least I think that is what is going on.

 

[chicken farmer]

Thanks you,yes it helped...I laid a egg in there around noon and havent bothered them yet,hopefully one of the hens will take to the egg(im trying to see if there wanting to go broody a little early because its only February and its cold)but if 1 of them wants to lay on it do you think I should let her because it would be around the end of march when it would hatch. Or i(I know it would brake her heart) but i might have to make a brooder pen and keep it in the house with a couple other chicks for a while.

 

[Stephanie739]

i posted in the wrong thread

 

[kec8391]

This is SUCH helpful information...we have a broody Welsummer that desperately needs babies...and we have a neighborhood that desperately despises roosters! So, sweet little pullets from the feed store, get ready to meet your mama! I know I'm at least a little ahead of the game with all the great suggestions! Hopefully I can add some soon too!

 

[Novaleigh]

I had some 8 chicks in the brooder who were 6 days old. My hen, Veldfire, just hatched out her own clutch of eggs earlier this morning. I wondered if Veldfire would accept and raise the older chicks along with her own younger babies. I put them next to her (in daylight), and she called them all over to join her and her day old chicks for dinner. She welcomed the older chicks, and they are now pecking and scratching with their new mom and so happy! I have such an amazing momma hen!


Here is a picture of Veldfire taking care of her hours old chicks (hatched this morning) and the older chicks (6 days old) together!





Giving dinner to the babies. All 19 of them! 11 day old chicks and 8 six day old chicks all under mommas care!

 

[chicken farmer]

I had some 8 chicks in the brooder who were 6 days old. My hen, Veldfire, just hatched out her own clutch of eggs earlier this morning. I wondered if Veldfire would accept and raise the older chicks along with her own younger babies. I put them next to her (in daylight), and she called them all over to join her and her day old chicks for dinner. She welcomed the older chicks, and they are now pecking and scratching with their new mom and so happy! I have such an amazing momma hen!


Here is a picture of Veldfire taking care of her hours old chicks (hatched this morning) and the older chicks (6 days old) together!





Giving dinner to the babies. All 19 of them! 11 day old chicks and 8 six day old chicks all under mommas care!

Love it,what breed

 

[Novaleigh]

Veldfire is a Partridge Rock and all of the babies she is raising is 3/4 Ameraucana (father is Wheaten Ameraucana, mothers are Easter Eggers).

 

[Beginningbreede]

I have a momma hen who was sitting on 6 unfertile eggs and then I switched them with 3 white Plymouth rock chicks and 3 Ameraucana chicks and shes a wonderful mother to them

 

[C&C Chickens]

I haven't posted in quite a while (not that I haven't been on this website - its still my go-to source for all chicken info all of the time). We have a nearly three year old cochin who has been broody perhaps 1/3 of her life who has been sitting for it seems like forever (at least five weeks this time around). Finally, the stars aligned and we got three day old chicks to give her. We just took them out to the coop to "slip under her" in the hopes that by morning she will have adopted them as her own. This is the first time we've done this, and we are understandably nervous parents, but I feel reassured by all of the posts in this thread that she will take to them. We set them down right next to her and each of the chicks knew exactly what to do - they slipped right under her and quieted down. We waited five minutes and then quietly checked again, and all seemed calm. We'll check again in the wee hours of the morning. Wish us luck!

 

[TopHatsNSpats]

I haven't posted in quite a while (not that I haven't been on this website - its still my go-to source for all chicken info all of the time). We have a nearly three year old cochin who has been broody perhaps 1/3 of her life who has been sitting for it seems like forever (at least five weeks this time around). Finally, the stars aligned and we got three day old chicks to give her. We just took them out to the coop to "slip under her" in the hopes that by morning she will have adopted them as her own. This is the first time we've done this, and we are understandably nervous parents, but I feel reassured by all of the posts in this thread that she will take to them. We set them down right next to her and each of the chicks knew exactly what to do - they slipped right under her and quieted down. We waited five minutes and then quietly checked again, and all seemed calm. We'll check again in the wee hours of the morning. Wish us luck!

Best of luck, but it sounds like you have a good game on Broody hens ROCK. I had one mixed Barred Rock/Americauna hen, Fiesty, that only had one eye, but was the most *amazing* mother hen in the world. You could put any number of eggs under her, and she would hatch and raise all of them. She would steal chicks from other hens, take in babies from the feed store; if it was a chick and it peeped, she wanted it. I have had others that were good, but never one like her. She was also fearless, once she even ran run off a coyote! She was well named, believe it. The other hens and even the roos knew not to mess with her babies. Amazing hen!